It’s no secret that most offices will be shut between Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, while many businesses will remain shut all the way through until January 2nd.
While this is great news for workers, it’s also great news for burglars as well, posing the perfect opportunity to strike while the iron is hot…or, more accurately, absent.
Christmas may be a time of giving but, for burglars across the country, it’s most certainly a perfect time for taking too – particularly if business security it lax.
Avoid returning to work for a New Year’s disaster by following this handy guide on how to safeguard the office when shutting down for Christmas.
Christmas Office Safety Tips
Shutdown Before Lockdown
As the office will likely remain uninhabited for several days, it’s important to not only protect your premises for risk of break-in but also risk of fire.
Naturally, the first port of call for fire prevention is to ensure all non-essential electrical items are appropriately turned off; including computers, festive decorations, etc.
You may also wish to turn the water off at the mains as an added precaution, to avoid any leaking pipes causing additional issues.
Conversely, you may want to set your heating systems to come on intermittently via a timer during the holiday to avoid any pipe issues, such as freezing.
Knowledge is Power
If you aren’t going to be the one to lock-up your work premises on the final day before the office holiday, it’s absolutely vital that the person tasked with doing so is clued up.
It goes without saying that the person given this responsibility will need to be reliable and trustworthy. However, that same person will also need to be briefed ahead of time.
Ensure the individual chosen to close up shop on your final working day is given a full run-down of the locking-up procedure in advance of the last day.
This will allow them time to: A. Get their head around the process; B. Ask any questions on anything they are unsure of; and C. Have a trial run if necessary.
Be Wary of Strangers
Christmastime brings with it an increase in deliveries, particularly if you allow your workers to get their personal effects and gifts items delivered to the office.
However, the increase in deliveries can also bring with it additional personnel on-site, many of whom you may not be familiar with. If so, be sure to exercise caution.
Allowing unfamiliar individuals on to your premises or, worse still, into your workspace can inadvertently gift them with valuable site information.
This can range from general layout and insight into entry routes to potentially even provision of security details and passwords.
Team Effort
Due to the nature of seasonal office closures, it’s not unusual for people to work late on the last day to get work wrapped up like the Christmas presents to come.
However, this can often lead to low numbers come closing time and can commonly leave the duties of locking up to a solitary member of the team.
Leaving a single worker to lock up prior to the Christmas holiday break can be a recipe for disaster and one that should be avoided at all costs.
Not only can holiday excitement lead to vital security measures being overlooked but the solitary nature of locking up alone also leaves the solo worker vulnerable to criminals.
Ensure there are at least two members of staff on hand for on the last day to provide your premises with safe and secure closure.
Christmas Lights
Turns out that the Christmas tree isn’t the only thing that benefits from a little bit of illumination during the festive period.
Ensuring the perimeter of your premises is well lit should be a high priority for any office manager or business owner.
Simply equipping your office entrance and site borders with lights can be an effective deterrent for thieves, increasing the chances of them being caught.
What’s more, it can also make it notably more difficult for potential thieves to survey your premises beforehand and considerably harder for them to go by undetected.
Office Safety with IDS Security
At IDS Security Systems, we know a thing or two about safeguarding businesses. In fact, we have been providing security solutions since 1996 and our experiences in that time make for good advice, particularly when it comes to business security.
In our experience, whether you’re a shop owner, an office manager or otherwise, there are certain security systems no business can afford to do without.
Check out this list of options currently available at IDS Security, designed to keep your business safe over Christmastime and running smooth all-year-round.
For more advice on office security over Christmas and Christmas office safety tips, why not drop us a line today? Call now on 029 20 753 251 or get in touch online by clicking the button below.
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